Abstract

Remote sensing and spatial analysis have been applied to map mass movements in the central part of the Maily-Say Valley, western Kyrgyzstan, and to detect recent landslide activations. The evolution of landslide activity over the past 50 years has been analysed on the basis of pre-existing landslide maps and new analyses of aerial photographs as well as Quickbird images. Five inventories were produced for the years 1962, 1984, 1996, 2002 and 2007. Size-frequency analyses applied to these inventories show that both the number and size of unstable slopes increased from 1962 to 2007 and the power-law exponent decreased over time indicating that landslide-related hazards are increasing